Australian Critical Minerals (ASX:ACM) has entered into a binding share purchase agreement to acquire privately held Circuit Resources, which owns several gold and copper projects in Peru.
Circuit Resources owns AU Investments SAC, Pegoco SAC and Latin Gold SAC and also holds an option to acquire all the concessions associated with the Blanca, Riqueza, Flint, Cerro Rayas, Liro and Kamika projects.
All of these projects are considered highly prospective for gold and copper, as well as silver, lead, and zinc, the company says.
Concurrently, Australian Critical Minerals is conducting a two-tranche placement to raise $1 million. Sandton Capital Advisory will act as lead manager.
The placement will be conducted at an issue price of $0.055 per share, with investors receiving one free-attaching unlisted option for every two shares subscribed for. The options are exercisable at $0.10 and have a two-year expiry date.
Funds will be used to advance the Peruvian project portfolio, including initial exploration and technical studies, as well as general working capital.
Under the deal to acquire Circuit, Australian Critical Minerals will issue 45 million shares to Circuit shareholders, as well 5 million quoted options exercisable at $0.30 on or before 28 June 2026 and 5 million performance rights to Managing Director Dean de Largie.
The transaction is conditional upon satisfying certain conditions within six months of signing the agreement. These conditions include completing due diligence and capital raise of at least $700,000 worth of shares, and securing shareholder approval.
Managing Director Dean de Largie says the acquisition is a “significant” opportunity for the company, delivering a pipeline of exploration projects in Peru.
“The scale and quality of these assets — spanning over 25,000 hectares — give us immediate drill-ready targets and exceptional scope for new discoveries,” De Largie says.
“Projects like Riqueza, with high-grade copper-silver veins over several kilometres and proximity to majors like Anglo American, offer tier one potential.
“Blanca has already demonstrated strong gold mineralisation, while Cerro Rayas and the Salar projects provide exposure to critical metals with potential strong demand tailwinds.”
For the Blanca Project, if Circuit elects to exercise the option and pay in shares, this will be satisfied through the issue of Australian Critical Minerals’ shares. The project option payment totals US$845,000 ($1.29 million).
The company intends prioritise exploration at Blanca and will begin the approval process for twin, infill and extension drilling immediately. Further details of drill planning will be released in due course as it is reliant on approval processes.
For the Flint Gold Project, the total option payment is US$580,000.
Surface sampling and geophysics will be expanded into the southern zone of the alteration system. A drilling program will follow target integration and modelling, starting early next year.
At Riqueza, a review of the project’s targets and the raw geophysics data is planned. The relationship between each target will be investigated as a mineral system and drill targets prioritised at that stage.
Australian Critical Minerals says it intends to focus on the vein system for initial drilling while being cognisant of the porphyry potential at various locations within the tenure.
A review and ranking of historical drill targets based on extensive surface sampling, mapping and geophysics is underway. Drill permitting is planned for the second half of this year.
The company plans to conduct mapping between the mineralisation sites to determine the relationship between known sites. Australian Critical Minerals is currently conducting scout drilling following structural confirmation.
Meanwhile at the Lio and Kamika projects, Circuit holds a right to acquire the owner of these projects for $1 million in cash or shares.
Early-stage geochemical sampling and basin modelling is planned for next year, subject to completing acquisition formalities and regulatory clearance.
Australian Critical Minerals is a mineral explorer focused on discovering minerals that will drive the global transition to a low-carbon future. The company has established a strong presence in Western Australia, with a portfolio of channel iron and banded iron projects.
Write to Aaliyah Rogan at Mining.com.au
Images: Australian Critical Minerals
